Qatar Airways raises Colombo flight capacity

Manama, December 13, 2013

Qatar Airways has announced an increase in capacity to Sri Lanka - with one of its triple-daily-flights to capital city Colombo expanded from a narrow-body Airbus 320 to the airline's flagship wide-body Boeing 777.

Beginning January 1 next year, the larger Boeing 777 will offer flat-bed seats in Business Class, and passengers in every seat across the Business and Economy Class cabins will experience a fully interactive personal audio and video entertainment system, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

Qatar Airways' Boeing 777 service to Colombo, QR 658, will be operated in a two-class configuration of 356 seats in Economy and 24 seats in Business Class.

The other two daily flights to the city will be served with the airline's narrow-body A320 aircraft which can accommodate 132 passengers in Economy and 12 in Business Class.

Qatar Airways country manager for Sri Lanka Ajay Jacob said the increase in capacity to Colombo will help in strengthening the airline's position in the Sri Lankan market.

"Colombo remains a popular destination in the carrier's rising Asia-Pacific network as we currently operate triple-daily-services to this city," he added.

The added capacity means travellers to and from Colombo will have greater access and also an increasingly competitive product like the Boeing 777.

An array of connecting destinations for passengers to and from Colombo over the airline's Doha hub include Chicago, Kilimanjaro, Nairobi, Moscow, Paris, London, Frankfurt, Rome, Milan, Venice, New York, Washington and Montreal.

"There are a significant number of Sri Lankan expatriates who are working in Qatar, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas," Jacob said.

"Additional seats will enable more passengers to travel with us, for leisure or on business," he added. – TradeArabia News Service